Alert archive / Florida / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Tallahassee, FL

February 21, 1989Walton County, Florida

NWS Tallahassee, FL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Feb 21, 1989, 4:13 AM CST for Walton County, Florida. It was in force for 62 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Feb 21, 1989, 4:13 AM CST (10:13 UTC)
Expired
Feb 21, 1989, 5:15 AM CST
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Tallahassee, FL
Area
Whole counties

County Walton County, FL

The radar

The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.

The nearest sounding before it

Apalachicola Mun, FL (KAQQ), launched 00:00Z, 10.2 hours before the alert went out and 150 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Apalachicola Mun, FL at 00:00Z on 1989-02-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 127 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Apalachicola Mun, FL at 00:00Z on 1989-02-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 142 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
127 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-118 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
778 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
54 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
142 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
150 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KPNS 211016
SVRPNS
FLC131-211115-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENSACOLA FL
413 AM CST TUE FEB 21 1989
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PENSACOLA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING AND
SPECIAL MARINE WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  515 AM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY...
 
IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA
          ...SOUTHERN WALTON
 
AND ADJOINING COASTAL WATERS.
 
 
RADAR INDICATES A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 15 MILES SOUTHWEST OF FREEPORT
FLORIDA. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.
 
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH YOU SHOULD
PREPARE FOR DAMAGING WINDS OF 58 MPH OR MORE...LARGE HAIL...AND
DEADLY LIGHTNING.  PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER...
PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Feb 20, 11:50 PM CST, 4 hours 23 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE APALACHICOLA FL
1242 AM EST TUE FEB 21 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR GULF COUNTY IN THE FLORIDA
   PANHANDLE UNTIL 5 AM THIS MORNING...

AT 1225 AM EST...THUNDERSTORMS...SOME WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN...
STRETCHED FROM NORTHEAST OF PENSACOLA TO SOUTHWEST OF DOTHAN
ALABAMA. SHOWERS WERE ALSO NOTED OVER SOUTHEAST ALABAMA AND
THE WESTERN FLORIDA PANHANDLE. ELSEWHERE...PATCHES OF LIGHT
RAIN WERE LOCATED OVER SOUTHWEST GEORGIA AND EXTENDED IN NORTH
FLORIDA WEST OF TALLAHASSEE.

MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Feb 21, 1:32 AM CST, 2 hours 41 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
235 AM EST TUE FEB 21 1989

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 9 IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM CST FOR THE NORTHWEST
FLORIDA COUNTIES OF JACKSON..CALHOUN AND LIBERTY...

AT 230 AM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED A LINE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS FROM DOTHAN ALABAMA TO NORTHEAST OF CRESTVIEW FLORIDA.
A FEW PATCHES OF LIGHT RAIN AND SHOWERS WERE ALSO FROM NEAR VALDOSTA
GEORGIA TO JUIST EAST OF TALLAHASSEE FLORIDA AND EXTENDED OUT OVER THE
APALACHEE BAY.

THE MOVEMENT OF THE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND LOCAL NEWS MEDIA FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION.
Special weather statement, Feb 21, 1:37 AM CST, 2 hours 36 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE APALACHICOLA FL
242 AM EST TUE FEB 21 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR GULF COUNTY IN THE FLORIDA
   PANHANDLE UNTIL 5 AM EST THIS MORNING...

AT 225 AM EST...A THUNDERSTORM WITH HEAVY RAIN WAS LOCATED NORTHWEST
OF DOTHAN ALABAMA. SHOWERS WERE ALSO NOTED OVER SOUTHEAST ALABAMA...
SOUTHWEST GEORGIA...AND NORTH FLORIDA.

OVER THE GULF...SHOWERS WERE LOCATED SOUTH OF PENSACOLA.

MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Feb 21, 2:36 AM CST, 1 hour 37 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE APALACHICOLA FL
338 AM EST TUE FEB 21 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR GULF COUNTY IN THE FLORIDA
   PANHANDLE UNTIL 5 AM EST THIS MORNING...

AT 333 AM EST...A THUNDERSTORM WITH HEAVY RAIN WAS LOCATED NORTH
OF MADISON FLORIDA. SHOWERS WERE ALSO NOTED OVER SOUTHEAST ALABAMA...
SOUTHWEST GEORGIA...AND NORTH FLORIDA.

OVER THE GULF...SHOWERS WERE LOCATED SOUTH OF FORT WALTON.

MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Feb 21, 3:34 AM CST, 39 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
435 AM EST TUE FEB 21 1989

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 9 IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 AM CST FOR THE NORTHWEST
FLORIDA COUNTIES OF JACKSON..CALHOUN AND LIBERTY...

AT 430 AM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED A LINE OF SCATTERED
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM NEAR VALDOSTA GEORGIA TO SOUTH OF
TALLAHASSEE FLORIDA AND OUT OVER THE APALACHEE BAY.

THE MOVEMENT OF THE SHOWERS AND THwUNDERSTORMS WAS NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND LOCAL NEWS MEDIA FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION.
Special weather statement, Feb 21, 3:44 AM CST, 29 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE APALACHICOLA FL
441 AM EST TUE FEB 21 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR GULF COUNTY IN THE FLORIDA
   PANHANDLE UNTIL 5 AM EST THIS MORNING...

AT 434 AM EST...A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING INTO THE WESTERN
FLORIDA PANHANDLE AND SOUTHEAST ALABAMA. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE SOUTHEAST
AT 45 MILES AN HOUR.

ELSEWHERE...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED OVER NORTH FLORIDA
WITH{ AN ISOLATED SHOWER NOTED IN SOUTH GEORGIA...NEAR VALDOSTA.

IN THE GULF...SHOWERS WERE LOCATED OFFSHORE OF FORT WALTON AND IN
APALACHEE BAY.

MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tallahassee, FL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 20, 9:09 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEOkaloosa, Walton66 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Florida, 1989Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1989

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.